Strategy Three: Bridging Conventions
Workshop with Laurenz Brunner and Alan Woo
01 – 05 Mar 2015
Offprint 2012 marked an interesting shift in Laurenz Brunner’s practice as a graphic designer, when he realized that a website could become the starting point for a visual identity. Numerous projects in the same vein followed, thus establishing the website “first approach” in graphic design circles. His designs are witty and informed by the history of print design. To emulate a real life collaboration between a designer and a programmer Laurenz invited Alan Woo to be part of this workshop.
The Brief
On the Verge of Disappearance
Introduction – Everyday things are disappearing. Rendered obsolete through technical evolution, political forces, destruction, gentrification or fading into non-existence through the extreme anonymity of mass reproduction. Genres and the borders between them dissolve, while others are simply forgotten; never caught in Google’s net nor edited into the canon of Wikipedia.
The things that are disappearing encompass a wide space between physical objects of long tradition (e.g. pay phones, analogue film), endangered species, cultural or racial minorities, rare languages, specialised crafts, to intangible yet deeply significant concepts such as privacy and anonymity. Gone soon may be conversations and simple debates that don‘t end in “I’ll google it”.
The moment at which something transitions to non-existence (or back) is a critical and intriguing moment. This “ether” or the “in between” state is perhaps of more interest than the beginning and end. Print itself has been undergoing this transition for some time. Perhaps it is this moment between print and post-print where some of the most interesting developments may occur. With this in mind, we want you to tell the story of things on the verge of disappearance, document them for future generations to come, before they’re forgotten and lost forever.
Assignment – Investigate and develop a portrait of a subject which is on the verge of disappearance.
– Choose an appopriate medium to document your given subject:
Photographic or video documentation, drawings, sound recordings etc.
– Develop an editorial approach describing the past, present and potential future state of the subject.
– Articulate a design strategy, which captures and preserves the essential attributes of the subject.
– Consider the qualities and the potential disappearance of the chosen medium itself.
Format – Work in groups of two. The outcome of the workshop should be presented in 2 ways:
– You will be asked to present your work and observations in the form of a physical exhibition.
– Together we’ll also initiate a growing online archive of all results. We will work to develop and establish this platform early in the workshop to begin exploring its possibilities as an archival and storytelling device.
The web platform will also work as an invitation for others outside the physical and temporal confines of the workshop itself to contribute.
